Clare Turner, Chief Commercial Officer at Pearl & Dean, on why cinema delivers 24 seconds of attention for every 30-second ad (versus 1.3 seconds on social), why streaming is complementary to rather than competitive with cinema, and why three decades in the medium taught her that captive audiences are the most valuable marketing asset available.
"On social, the average view of a brand ad is 1.3 seconds. In cinema, 24 seconds of the 30 second ad is viewed."
Why cinema delivers 24 seconds of a 30-second ad and why the people who stream the most are also the heaviest cinema goers
Clare Turner has spent three decades at Pearl & Dean, the UK's best-known cinema advertising company, where she serves as Chief Commercial Officer. Three decades is long enough to have survived VHS, DVD, illegal downloading, and the rise of streaming, all of which were heralded as the death of cinema and none of which killed it.
In this conversation Turner explains why cinema's attention metrics are unlike any other media format, why FAME research shows that the people who subscribe to the most streaming platforms are also the most frequent cinema goers, and why the relationship between cinema and streaming is complementary rather than competitive.
"There is nowhere else anymore that you switch off for two or three hours where it is socially unacceptable to be on your phone. For a brand to have this environment, with the huge sound, the huge screen, plunged into darkness, captive audience, people who have paid and opted in to choose a film. We know that 24 seconds out of the 30 second ad is viewed. On social, 1.3 seconds is the average view for a brand."
Turner leads with the attention argument. The structural superiority of cinema attention metrics is the commercial foundation of the medium.
"Every time there is a new technology it is going to be the death of cinema. VHS in the 80s. Downloading. Now streaming. But FAME research shows that the more streaming platforms someone subscribes to, the more frequently they attend cinema. Content lovers watch on streaming and go to cinema. It is like listening to music at home versus going to a concert."
Turner has data that inverts the competitive framing. Streaming and cinema audiences are the same people.
"Cinema is a broad church. We have a lot of Gen Z, a lot of Gen Alpha. Those audiences were impacted by the pandemic but they are really coming back. In foyer areas, we have 30 minutes of dwell time before the film starts. For brands, that is additional contact time with a physically present, engaged audience."
The foyer opportunity is often overlooked but represents significant additional brand time.
"Cinema is rarely used in isolation. It is brand and performance together. Cinema offers a fantastic branding platform for real storytelling creative, and then social gets the bottom of the funnel experience. TV and cinema are complementary. We have research studies showing positive ROI for adding cinema to a TV campaign."
Turner makes the integration argument, not the standalone argument. Cinema elevates everything it is combined with.
"I just have a huge passion for film and for cinema. It is the best medium to work in. There is always something new and interesting to talk about with the film content. And the experience of going to cinema is something you cannot replicate at home no matter how big the screen. That is what keeps people coming back."
Personal conviction that the medium is irreplaceable shapes how Turner thinks about its commercial potential.
"Cinema is the ultimate escapism. You cannot replicate that at home, no matter how big the screen."
Host What makes cinema different from every other advertising channel?
Turner There is nowhere else anymore that you switch off for two to three hours where it is socially unacceptable to be on your phone. 24 seconds of a 30 second ad is viewed in cinema. On social the average brand ad view time is 1.3 seconds. Captive audience, huge screen, huge sound, plunged into darkness. Paid to be there. Opted in.
Host How has cinema survived streaming?
Turner Every new technology is going to be the death of cinema. VHS. Downloading. Now streaming. But FAME research shows the more streaming platforms someone subscribes to, the more frequently they go to cinema. Content lovers consume everything. Cinema is like going to a concert when streaming is listening at home. Complementary not competitive.
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